It is possible for you to find help from a government agency or non-profit organization if you have a legal issue. However, there are only a few situations in which you can get it for free. One of the situations is when you face criminal charges.
If you or your loved one has been charged with a crime and cannot afford to fire a criminal defense attorney on your own, you have a constitutional right to an attorney at government expense. According to the U.S. Constitution, you are entitled to representation by an attorney if the state is trying to deprive you of your liberty. The statement means that a court may be required to appoint an attorney to be your representative for free or for a fee that you can afford. This one applies in case the crime that you are charged with carries a jail sentence.
As per the federal constitution, if you are a defendant, you have a right to an attorney before getting punished by imprisonment. According to some courts, the right to counsel applies not only whether imprisonment is imposed but whenever it may be imposed. Aside from that, states have the right to provide the right to counsel in other circumstances, including if you as a defendant could be sentenced to a fine of a specific amount.
If you are a defendant and request an attorney, an attorney that usually comes from a public defender’s office, can be appointed to be your representative when you are formally charged in court with a criminal offense.
Talking about public defenders, they are known as fully licensed lawyers whose sole job is to represent poor defendants in criminal cases. They earn a lot of experience in a short period of time due to how often they show up in the same courts. Because these attorneys work every day with the same cast of characters, they study the personalities and prejudices of the judges, prosecutors, and local law enforcement officers. The thing that they study is really useful when assessing a case and conducting a trial.
If the area where you live does not have a public defender’s office, the local government will usually reach out to the private law firms to take cases for indigent defendants. Not only that, the courts will also maintain a list of attorneys and appoint them on a rotating basis to be the representative of those who cannot afford to hire their own lawyers.
If you are one of the defendants who cannot afford to hire a criminal defense attorney on your own, you may be wondering how you can get one for free. So, what should you do to get a court to appoint a public defender for you?
Usually, if you want to get a free criminal defense attorney for free or to get a court appoint a public defense attorney for you at government expenses, the first thing that you must do is to ask the court to appoint an attorney for you that will be present at your first court appearance, which is normally known as your arraignment or bail hearing. Usually, you will be asked by the judge whether there is an attorney to represent you. If you say to the judge that you do not have an attorney that can be your representative, you will be then asked by the judge whether you want to apply for court-appointed counsel. If the answer to the question is yes, then the court will appoint an attorney right on the spot and finish your arraignment. It should be noted that the other courts will delay your case and appoint an attorney only after the process of reviewing and approving your financial circumstances is done.
Apparently, every state or even country has its own rules as to the one who qualifies for a free attorney. However, in general, if the judge thinks that you are too poor to pay for your own attorney and there is a chance of you being sentenced with jail or prison sentence, it is a must for the court to appoint free legal counsel. In the case when the judge thinks that you are not qualified to get free criminal defense attorney but you really cannot afford the full cost of a private lawyer, it is possible for you to get the services of a court-appointed attorney. Apparently, there is partial indigency in most states. It means, at the end of the case, you will be required by the judge to pay some costs of representation.
If you are in the case where the judge finds that you are not qualified for to get free criminal defense attorney but you really cannot afford the full cost of a private lawyer and you get the services of a court-appointed attorney but will have to pay some costs of representation when the case is over, you may have a thought to represent yourself in a criminal case. The question is, is it possible to represent yourself in a criminal case?
If you are wondering about the possibility, it is actually possible. However, you should think of the punishment that you may get if you are convicted. It is the reason why it is best for you to have an attorney as your representative when jail time is possible. One thing that you have to take note of is that convictions, including the ones that are seemingly minor offenses, can carry hidden costs, such as more severe punishment for a second conviction, increased insurance rates, loss of suspension of a professional license, and deportation in case of non-citizens.
If you choose to get an attorney to represent you but you are unhappy with them, the chance of your request to change the attorney is low because the judge will think that disagreements between the attorney paid by the government and the client are common. However, it is possible in a serious case.
A bookworm and researcher especially related to law and citizenship education. I spend time every day in front of the internet and the campus library.
